Winter 2013 Class Descriptions

As of 3/3/2015 5:25:07 AM

International Bankruptcy

This course is a multi-school offering taught by weekly live lecture in New York (Columbia Law School) simultaneously telecast to participating institutions (including Michigan). The lectures are given by leading insolvency practitioners, and satellite classrooms will be equipped with live question-and-answer capability. Professor Pottow will host the Michigan classroom, meaning he will contribute to the curriculum and exam as well as be responsible for assigning grades to the Michigan students. Because of the need to synchronize with other participating law schools, the schedule will be slightly different from other winter term courses; specifically, the course will meet beginning on Thursday, January 19 and will end on Thursday, April 19. On Thursday, March 15, Michigan students will watch a recording of the class which will take place on Thursday, March 1, during Michigan's mid-winter break.

Students are strongly recommended to have completed a course in bankruptcy before or concurrently with this class. (Students who have not done so must contact Prof. Pottow, pottow@umich.edu, before enrolling.)

The fuller description that appears in the Columbia Law School course catalogue follows:

This course offers an introduction to some of the jurisdictional problems that arise when international corporations becomesinsolvent. Internationalcorporations typically have assets and subsidiaries in multiple jurisdictions.When distress occurs, a troubled corporation and its subsidiaries may thereforefile for bankruptcy in several different jurisdictions with significantlydifferent bankruptcy procedures. It is therefore essential that modernbankruptcy lawyers have at least a basic understanding of the distinctivefeatures of foreign bankruptcy regimes. Additionally, even if a corporation andits subsidiaries file for bankruptcy in a single jurisdiction, thatjurisdiction's court will often need the assistance of courts in foreignjurisdictions in order to help protect the corporation's assets and consummatea successful reorganization (or liquidation). It is therefore important formodern bankruptcy lawyers to understand the opportunities for court-to-courtcooperation.

The first half of this course identifies the basic contoursof the world's major bankruptcy regimes, including the laws of the UnitedStates, United Kingdom, China, Japan, Canada, and Latin American and WesternEuropean countries. During the second half, we study the major legal frameworksfor court-to-court cooperation (Chapter 15 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code and E.U.Insolvency Regulation). We also discuss the opportunities for foreign nationalsto use U.S. Bankruptcy Law (particularly Chapter 11) to pursue areorganization.

Instructors: Each lecture will be taught by one or two visiting instructors.

Technical Aspects: The course will originate at Columbia Law School and betelecast to at least eight other schools across the U.S. Students at the otherschools will be able to see and hear the instructor and ask questions (in realtime). These students will take exams prepared and graded by professors at their institutions.

At the end of the course, students will have:
1. Acquired a basic understanding of the contours of some ofthe world's most important bankruptcy regimes.
2. Developed skill in comparative law analysis of legalinstitutions and the law.
3. Further developed skill in statutory and case law analysis.